So Thankful for You

Where has the time gone? My life really begins to move in fast forward from September through January! 

In response to all of your lovely comments on my last post - my sister-in-law truly loved the card I created for her! : )

I had also made a batch of cards to give her for a gift and she loved those too : ) I tell you... there is nothing like a room full of women gushing over your card creations that makes your buttons bust! : ) I love how much people appreciate hand crafted cards : ) 

My card today was created using Stampin Up products exclusively when my friend Theresa and I got together in September. 

I masked the large cluster of trees from the "Lovely As a Tree" stamp set so that I could use just three in my circle.  The paper is from the "All is Calm" DSP paper series and the sentiment is from the "I like You" hostess gift stamp set.

That is it for today as I am sewing scarves for a New Release that will go live to customers on 10/14.  I LOVE sewing new scarves!! It is as much fun as opening a new paper pack!

Hope your day is going well.

(((Hugs)))
Patti

Happy Retirement

Happy Retirement and Happy World Card Making Day!!  I will not be home to play with my card making friends today because DH and I are headed to a party!  My SIL retired on Monday and today we are celebrating her new freedom! 

There is the star of the show now  : )  and here is what I hope she will be able to do plenty of:

I hope that whatever you are doing on this World Card Making Day will bring you joy!

Patti

Supplies:
DSP by SU: Flashback
 Happy Retirement sentiment from SU's Teeny Tiny Wishes
All other stamps and dies are from PTI's Polka Dot Parade #3

Just My Type

Hello friends : )  Today is a quick post of a card I made recently. 

I have been getting really comfortable with CAS cards lately! : )I especially love the ribbon on this card because it reminds me, in a strange way, of a typewriter ribbon! anyone remember those? : )

I hope you are having a great day! I have been super busy getting ready for a craft show this coming weekend where we will set up and sell our neckStyles™ scarves to the THOUSANDS! of people who attend.  Well... I hope we sell thousands LOL

See you tomorrow!

Patti

September Birthday

As September draws to a close I wanted to post a card I created earlier this month for my Hubby.

Do you ever feel like life gets stuck on fast forward? That is how September has been for me.  I really can't believe October is almost here.  I realize that means with one or two more blinks we'll be up to our neck in SNOW!  sigh  But right now in northwestern Wisconsin the weather is beautiful and the landscape everywhere is blazing with spectacular color! : ) Fall is my very favorite season.  I am enjoying every single day of it.

This simple card was created using the Hexagon cover plate by PTI.  Using several different SU "Sweet Taffy" DSP papers I positioned by hexagons and glued them flat on my white card base.  I popped up three shapes using foam tape.  I added my sentiment from the Birthday Classics: September stamp set by PTI and then a little splash of bling with some sequins. He liked it : )

I hope you have a wonderful week and will find time to get inky!! : )

Patti

Merry and Bright

My card today is another I created for my friend, Theresa of InkyFingers1 blog.  We have been sharing and swapping supplies. : ) She asked me to create some cards that she can share with her customers that use exclusive or almost exclusive Stampin Up products. 

My card base is white but the lovely patterned paper comes from Stampin Up's All is Calm DSP series.  I added some Soft Sky and embossed it with SU's new Polka Dot EF and finally I added one of the precious die cut houses in the new Holiday Home stamp set from the Holiday Catalog.  I love this set! there are so many fun things you can do with this stamp/die combo.  You'll be seeing a lot more from me from this versatile set.

I embellished with some ribbon and Baker's Twine from my stash and finally added a sentiment from the Good Greetings stamp set - which by the way is a hostess gift that you can earn for free when you have a qualifying party.  Please consider stopping in at Theresa's blog to leave some love! : )

I hope you have a great day : ) I will be... Theresa is coming over to play with paper : ) There is just nothing like a girlfriend and some great paper crafting supplies to put a smile on your face! : )

Patti

Give Thanks

Edited to add:  I have "found" Judy1223 from Judy's Card Corner blog! Please be sure to pay her a visit.  She is a lovely and talented papercrafter. : ) 

Hello friends : ) I have been away for a while as I wrestle with life a bit.  I am back now and hope to get around to visiting my blog friends very soon.

I wanted to welcome some new followers including Judy1223, Cardsrus, Claire Grantham and Mickey Jo.  Unfortunately, other than Mickey Jo's blog  I can't seem to figure out how to link you the the blogs of these ladies : ( I am such an old dog trying to learn new tricks. So ladies! if you visit me again please be so kind as to leave me a link to your blog I would love to visit you and give you a shout out. : ) Friends, please visit Mickey Jo and comment on her lovely cards and bracelets! : )

My card today was created for my friend, Theresa of InkyFingers1 blog.  She is a bran new Stampin Up demonstrator and she is trying to build her product and customer base.  With the exception of the circle and scallop die cut and the polka dot ribbon all materials used are current Stampin Up supplies : )

I hope this finds you well and happy today and enjoying a lovely weekend!

(((Hugs)))
Patti

Supplies:
Card base: Crushed Curry by SU
Patterned paper: Lullaby DSP by SU
Butterflies from the Papillon Potpourri Stamp Set by SU
Sentiment from the Good Greetings SU stamp set
Circle and scallop die cut from Nestabilities
Polka Dot ribbon by American Crafts

Happy Happy Birthday Bev!

Today is a celebration for one of the sweetest gals in blogland!  It's a birthday party for Bev owner of Happy Dance blog.

Me and my guy are all decked out for the happiest dance of the year!  Please join us at the party over at Ardyth's place - the  MASKerade blog.  Ardyth and her partner in "crime", Darnell of djkardcreations blog have cooked up quite a PARTY! : )

Happy Birthday, Bev! your card will be in the mail today.  I didn't want to take a chance mailing it too early for fear of spoiling the surprise : )  I hope it is the happiest birthday celebration of all!!

BIG (((Hugs)))

Patti

Supplies:
Image from Art Impressions, Inc.
Frame was computer generated
colored with Prisma Pencils

Hostess Gift

inside sentiment reads: thinking of you

Hello friends : ) I am home from my trip to Florida.  Thank you so much for all your well wishes and concern!  I was blessed to see my father in better health than I had feared I would find him.  He is recovering well and even getting back to some of his old favorite pastimes.

I took a gift of cards to my step Mother that I made using the "Life is Sweet" stamp and die set from Papertrey Ink.  She liked it : ) and here they all are.

I drew a heart shape on my card stock in pencil and then followed the shape to create my heart wreath.  I love the delicate littlest stamp in this set.

I drew a circle on my card stock for the wreath shape onthis card as well and then built my floral wreath : ) Super easy!!

Last but not least here is a picture that my brother took of my Dad and step Mom with me on their side porch it was the only picture I was able to get of them before my camera battery died.  

I am hoping to get out to blogland very soon to catch up with all that you gals have been up to while I have been away. My mouse finger is itching to see all the inspiration I've been missing : )

BIG (((Hugs)))

Patti

I'm leaving on a jet plane!

I will be flying to visit my dear ol' Dad today but before I go here is a birthday card I will be taking along for my brother.  I cannot remember the last time I got to spend my brother's birthday with him : ) 

He is an avid and talented photographer.  I know he will smile when he sees this card.

I wish I had been able to make some blogland rounds before leaving but this week has been over the top hectic!  I will catch up with you late next week.  BIG (((Hugs)))

Patti

Supplies:

Flashback DSP by Stampin Up
Sending You die from Papertrey Ink
Sentiment from the Phrase Play #6 stamp set by PTI

Kickin' Booties!

I really love my new bootie die and detail dies from Papertrey Ink. Today I want share a pair I created for my friend, Theresa to celebrate her first grandson.  This is going to be a long(ish) post because I've taken a a bunch of photos in hopes that if my descriptions are lacking you'll be able to pick up what I leave out from the photographs. : )

Here we go...

Remember these? Corsages made from silk flowers and baby socks?  In this part of the world these sweet little corsages are all the rage... or maybe it is just with my husband's family LOL but no baby shower is complete without a baby sock corsage.  Here is a picture of my niece, Sara, and I.  Sara is wearing a corsage that I made for her baby shower in 2011.

We have some more niece baby showers coming up this year so I decided to try making the sweet PTI booties into a corsage.

Theresa's corsage was my "guinea pig" : ) here is how I did it.

After constructing the actual booties from the PTI dies - I stitched the two booties together -

 

stitching them carefully with an off color thread. These threads will be easy to snip in the event the recipient wants to take the corsage apart to use the booties. : )

Before filling the shoes with flowers I needed to attach the pin backing.  This is a pretty hefty corsage so I wanted to be sure the pin would hold the corsage and again, I wanted to be sure the booties weren't spoiled in the process.

To achieve this I created a card stock piece which would serve as my "platform" for the pin back. I laid the shoes on the piece of cs - drew an outline then cut it out.

I then pierced holes where I wanted to stitch.

Lining the cs "platform" up on the bottom of the shoes I then stitched the cs to the booties using the same thread I used for constructing that part of the booties.  I did not use an off color thread because I knew it would show on the top of the booties.  As long as the recipient snips only the threads visible on the face of the cs platform they won't run any risk of snipping the wrong threads.

Next I made a couple of stitches to secure the pin backing to the cs and the booties and finally added two drops of hot glue to insure the pin  back would not fall off or be flimsy.

I put some lightweight tissue paper into the toes of the booties for support. This is an important part of making sure your booties can hold the weight of the flowers and leaves.

For this corsage I wanted to use "Grandma Pink" : ) silk roses.  I have been told I may have overdone it on the roses LOL but I guess I should have mentioned first of all I am NOT a florist LOL so I was winging it.

Here I wired my flower clusters to florist sticks (which were way too long but later timed) and then I covered the wire and the sticks with green floral tape.

After trimming the sticks to the length I wanted I was ready to place my flowers.  I wish that I would have had some florist foam or clay so my sticks could have stuck in securely but I didn't have any.  When I do this again this is the only step I would change.  Instead I simply put a layer of tissue paper in the shoe to protect the bootie and then began arranging the floral sticks into the booties adding drops of hot glue as needed to secure them. When I was finished I tucked in any remaining tissue paper that was hanging out - filling in any gaps around the inside of the shoe to be sure the flowers would remain secure.

That's it! : ) neat huh?  I really love making these booties. And I was pleased with how the corsage turned out.  Theresa was too : ) Her grandson, Christopher, was born on August 26th : )

I will be traveling to Florida next week to visit my Dad and I wanted to take some hand sewing with me so that I will have something to do on the plane and in the evenings if I'm alone.  I have cut several different pairs and I'm having to hold myself back from stitching them all up before I go! LOL

I do not plan to make all of these booties into corsages...... but....... then again.... you never know! : )

Thanks a bunch for hanging with me all the way to the end of this post : ) I think it took me longer to explain my process than it actually did to create the corsage LOL

This is my first time for entering Simon Says Stamp challenge! I hope I did everything right : ) What are you waiting for!? It is anything goes this week! so please come on and join the fun!!

Patti

Supplies:
Baby Bootie Die from Papertrey Ink
Baby Bootie Detail Die from PTI
Coffee Cozy Detail Dies from PTI
Felt from PTI
Silk flowers, ribbon and buttons from my stash 

I Miss You

Isn't this image cute!? I have recently "found" Serendipity Stamps and I love them!! : ) Their products are fantastic and the customer service is outstanding!! I definitely recommend checking them out.

I am entering my darling little shoes in this months challenge.  Here is the challenge:

Challenge #34 - Missing You!  Create a "Missing You" themed card.   Be sure to include at least one Serendipity Stamps image (Stamp or Die) on your project! Our favorite design will receive our winner blog badge and one random winner of this challenge will receive a $20 discount off their next order from Serendipity Stamps.

Great prize!  : ) 

I've been busy the past few days and I know I'm a little behind visiting my blog friends.  I hope you are all well and having fun getting inky!  I will be visiting you all very soon.

I hope to be back tomorrow with a LONG post to show you a sweet little project I've been working on. If not tomorrow then Sunday for sure. : )

Have a wonderful day!

Patti

hello baby

Something about babies and polka dots - just make me smile! Here is a sweet little pair of booties I CASEd from Nichole Heady of Papertrey Ink.  Nichole's darling color combo sealed the deal when I was making this buying decision : )

I have been in bootie heaven lately but I will share more about that in my post later this week.  Today I want to mainly focus on my card.  I started with a white card base by PTI.  I embossed just the top portion of a slightly smaller card face using the Large Polka Dot embossing folder by SU.  Next I scored four lines using my Scor Pal - creating a little frame for my aqua mist polka dot ribbon by American Crafts. Now it gets really fun!

Is that itty bitty little bow adorable or what!? My first ever purchase from Mamma Elephant - the  Dainty Bow and Hello Script dies! I cut both from Aqua Mist felt by PTI

Because of the three layers of the bow and the resulting thickness I decided to beef up my felt "hello" die cut by cutting two of the same die from my white cs. The added thickness really makes it stand out nicely and I feel the felt adds to the softness of this hello baby card! : )

I tell you - these booties are addicting... and I hope I never recover! Please stop back later this week because  I will show you a baby bootie corsage I created for a special friend  : )

Have a wonderful day!

Patti

Supplies:
Card
White cs by PTI
Large Polka Dot embossing folder by Stampin Up
polka dot ribbon by American Crafts
Aqua Mist felt by PTI
"baby" from Limitless Labels Stamp Set by PTI
Booties
Aqua Mist, Melon berry, Limeade Ice felt by PTI
Flowers and leaves cut from the Just Smile Collection dies
Embroidery floss by DMC

Time After Time

For the final challenge of the 2014 Stamp-A-Faire Nichole has challenged us! Here is what she writes:  Take this opportunity to reflect back on what this hobby has done for you and all the beautiful things you have made with your two hands and your heart!  Dig into your stash and find one of your early creations.  Utilize many of the same elements, colors or even the design to create a new card that embraces your current style.  Enjoy the process and be proud of how far you have come!

I was so surprised as I review the pictures of my early cards how CAS my style was then.  I know it was, in part, due to the lack of supplies I had on hand but I think I've gotten more "chunky" and embellished as I progressed in my card making style.  I may have gotten more chunky in other ways too but we won't talk about that! : p

I do not have any pictures of my very early cards but this one was created and photographed  in 2007.  My card style isn't the only thing that has changed LOL  I used a flat bed scanner to get my pictures.  That is the reason for the warped looking image.

And here is a card I created today. 

I tried to stick with the same basic design of my card today as the one from 2007.   When I first began playing on forums and message boards I used the name "ant me."  : )

One of my favorite card styles to make now is Square cards. A few other changes to my style have been the addition of die cuts which I am crazy for! A strong use of embossing which is on most of my cards (not this one LOL) and one of my favorite stamping additions has been the purchase of papertrey Ink products.  I believe I bought my very first set in 2007.  It was the Limitless Layers stamp set for making the Hershey Nugget wrappers.  I did that once or twice and never really gave PTI another look for many years.  I am happy to say they are now my favorite company and my supply of PTI product is really beginning to grow!

That is it for me  and my walk down my personal memory lane heehee

Have a great evening friends : )

Patti

1980 - Final stop on our time travel journey

Lexi Daly from Papertrey Ink has had me making folded notes all afternoon! LOL It was so much fun trying new and remembering old note folding tricks from my own school days (way before the 1980s) as well as refreshing my memory so that I can share these fun little cuties when my granddaughter visits again!

I have to admit that I struggled! I wish I would have thought to check out Lexi's actual blog before I attempted my folding because she has a very helpful diagram on her blog.  Check it out HERE. 

Stamp-A-Faire 2014 has been fun.  Not as much fun as if I would have been sitting with gal pals eating junk food and working the challenges together but I had an unexpectedly - free - few days and found Stamp-A-Faire 2014 a great way to spend them! : )

As she guides us to the 1980s Levi writes this:  There was an explosion of color in the 80s and rainbows were everywhere, from clothing and decor to logos, toys, and even postage stamps. Rainbows in their actual form, paired with unicorns and cats, and rainbow patterns, striped and repetitive. Rainbow heart sweaters and shoelaces pop up on almost every 80s search. While rainbows really haven’t ever gone out of style, they definitely had a special place in the 80s.

Lexi demonstrates several sweet projects. Today I created this little gift card holder.

I was in need of a gift card holder for my granddaughter, Katie.  She will be helping my BFF and business partner, Diane, and I with a HUGE outdoor craft fair in October where we will set up and sell our neckStyles™ scarves.   Katie has been my sewing student for many years and has even begun to create neckStyles™ scarves herself - under my close supervision.  This will be her first craft show event and will have the fun of seeing her scarves "flying out the door" at the craft show. : ) She won't want any money for her help but I'm planning to give her a gift card to her favorite fabric store.  This little card will make the perfect holder for her gift!

Stamp-A-Faire closes for everyone by early tomorrow morning but there is just one more challenge we are posed with.  To re-create one of our very first cards.  I just can't wait to blurf around to see all the delightful new and old cards that are created for this leg of the journey.  Please stop back by later to see how I've changed over the years : )

Patti

Supplies:

Solid cs by SU
Thank You sentiment is an unmarked clear stamp which, by the way, is NBUS! 
Flowers and sentiments from the Doodlie-Do stamp set by PTI
"Pull Here" sentiment from the Movers and Shakers Sentiments by PTI

Stamp-A-Faire travel continues to 1960

Erin Lincoln, one of my all time favorite designers, is our guide into the 1960's as the time travel continues (at least for me) Stamp-A-Faire 2014.  See both of Erin's creative video tutorials HERE.

In her second video tutorial Erin writes: 
1960's advertising was all about grabbing your attention with a "big idea". The slogans seemed to talk directly to you, selling both confidence and the product itself. "One doesn't come without the other," they seemed say. 
Naturally, you wanted whatever they were selling in order to feel that confidence boost. Those Mad Men certainly knew how to do their jobs and land those accounts. 
Your challenge is to grab the same sort of attention on your paper crafting project. Combine a sense of order within something asymmetrical. Use bold, clashing colors and overlapping shapes with confidence. The type was thick, whimsical, and black and often placed on the lower half of the ad. Inlaid die cuts help to add a slick and sleek appearance.

That was the inspiration for my card this morning. This is a card for one of my sisters who is facing a terrible health struggle.  I want to SELL her on taking it easy and letting God take control of her - from head to toe!

I started with a white card base by PTI.  I cut a rectangle Spellbinders die from a piece of solid Island Indigo cs as well as the same rectangle from a Real Red cs both by SU.  I used the negative and positive of both of these die cuts.  After taping my blue and red cs together I proceeded to cut the easy chair and TV/antenna replacing them with a contrasting colored die that I stamped in the coordinating color ink. Next I added some background stamps, sentiment and finally some silver Stickles to bring a little punch to my message. : )

This was probably the most challenging challenge for me so far.  If you are following my journey through time you may find that hard to believe LOL but I didn't feel like I succeeded very well due to the lack of good 1960's supplies for this one.  I like my card and I know my sister will too but when I have more time I plan to try my hand at this challenge again to see if I can do better : )

Lexi Daly is up next with 1980 : ) our travels are getting close to being done.  I'm really looking forward to what Lexi has to share!

Patti

Supplies:
Solid cs by PTI and SU
TV Chair stamp set and dies by PTI called Polka Dot Parade #3
Background stamps from CTMH called Serendipity
Silver Stickles
Rectangle Spellbinders Die

Stamp-A-Faire - the 1940's

The uber talented Betsy Veldman has created the most adorable post and video for this Era.  Nichole writes on her blog that Betsy sets the tone for the 1940's era with a beautifully composed letter she wrote "as if a young woman were writing to her true love overseas during the war"  Check out Betsy's sweet letter and video tutorial HERE.

Betsy introduced her video this way: During wartime, supplies were scarce and the essentials were rationed.  This meant that new clothes were hard to come by.  So women would “make-do” and spruce up an old dress or hat by creating a flower pin or brooch out of scraps of felt and fabric.  It was their way of breathing new life into a tired, old outfit. 

Here is my little felt nosegay.  I decided to attach mine to a card (which is going to have to be hand delivered with lots of love! ) I really enjoyed creating these sweet little flowers.  Thank you, Betsy for a very inspiring look at the 1940's.

It is getting very late so I guess I will hit the hay.  I plan to be back in the time machine tomorrow hoping to see what the 1960's hold : )

Patti

Supplies:
Solid white cs by PTI
Embossing folder by Anna Griffin for Cuttlebug
Pti Felt used: Raspberry Fizz, Melon Berry, Harvest Gold, Spring Moss
Flowers and leaves cut from PTI's  Just Smile Die Collection
sentiment from Phrase Play #6 stamp set by PTI
Polka dot Ribbon by American Crafts